Just To Complicate the Matter
by Cool Cat Productions
Summary: Misty loves Ash. Simple, isn't it? Well…no…not really…why? Find out inside. Main pairings are Ikari, Contest, Poke, Oldrival & OCxOC. Other pairings inside.
1. Chapter 1: New School, New Friends

**Full Summary**: Misty loves Ash. Simple, right? Well, no, not really, because May also loves Ash, but Ash has a crush on Dawn and Drew is fawning over May. Leaf is smitten with Drew, but is also likes Paul, Liam and almost everyone except for Gary, who has a crush on her! And poor Dawn is helplessly in love with Paul who doesn't notice her. Meanwhile, Liam likes Katrina, but he's too terrified to tell her! So when a school trip comes up, can this love tangle sort itself out?

**Basically, a confusing twisty, knotty thing with a load of pairings. Kinda cheesy and silly…but it entertains me. Heh. Pairings will end up as:**

**AshxMisty**

**DrewxMay**

**PaulxDawn**

**GaryxLeaf**

**LiamxKatrina (OC/OC)**

**Other pairings mentioned or half used as part of the tangle include, but may not be limited to, AshxMay, AshxDawn, LeafxPaul, LeafxDrew, LeafxLiam. (Yeah, a lot of Leafx?s)**

**I don't own Pokémon, unfortunately, or any characters apart from Katrina and Liam. Mwahahaha.**

* * *

_Beep! Beep!_

"Nyeh…"

_Beep! Beep!_

"Ugh…"

_Beep! Beep!_

"Jus' a little longer…"

_Beep! Beep!_

"MAY! Wake up!"

"AH!" May screamed as a glass of water was dumped on her head. With wet strands of hair clinging to her face, she sat up, growling, her cheeks flushed with rage. "You're gonna pay, ya little pipsqueak!" she yelled, throwing her bed covers off and chasing after her little brother who was speeding out of the room.

"May, honey. Good to see you up!" Caroline smiled as her daughter ran into the kitchen shortly after Max.

"Only overslept by fifteen minutes," Norman added, peering at her over his newspaper.

"Overslept…" May blinked a few times, her face clouded with confusion until it finally dawned on her. "School!" she yelped in horror. She grabbed some toast from the table, accompanied by an annoyed shriek from Max as it had been from his plate, and threw herself up the stairs to get ready.

Twenty minutes later, May and Max were outside, walking down the street to the bus stop. They had recently moved to the area, and so today was their first day at their new school. There were only a few people at the bus stop. A couple were Max's age, or there about, whilst the others were May's age, one of whom was a boy with jet-black hair and brown eyes. A cap was jammed on his head, raven locks sticking out messily at odd angles.

May smiled and, assuming he went to her school, said, "Hi, do you go to Totehall?"

"Yep!" the boy said cheerfully, grinning. "I'm Ash, Ash Ketchum."

"I'm May. I'm new."

"Really? Well…if you like, I could show you around when we get there. I'll introduce you to my friends," Ash offered generously.

"Really?" May asked, surprised at his initial kindness. "That would be great, thanks!"

When the bus came, May found herself seated next to Ash, much to her delight but to the annoyance of Max who was forced to sit by a chatterbox of a kid who went by the name of Fred.

The next bus stop saw the arrival of a slender girl with orange hair tied to the side and sea green eyes. She was smiling happily until she saw May sitting next to Ash, and her grin dropped like a stone.

"Hi Ash…and Ash's friend…" she said, her eyes whizzing between the two as she sat in the seat in front of them.

"Hey Mist! This is May, she's new to Totehall. I said I'd show her around once we get there."

"Oh…that's kind of you, Ash," Misty commented, looking back at May. She put on a smile and held out her hand. "Misty Waterflower."

"May Maple. It's nice to meet you, Misty."

"Yeah, same here."

When the bus finally made it to the school building, there were only fifteen minutes left until the students would have to go in for form/homeroom. Max quickly rejoined May as soon as they were off the bus, his usually neat hair somewhat messy and his skin, pale.

"I can't take it!" he yelped. "If I have to hear about Jack or Liz one more time, I'll go mad!"

"Jack and Liz?" May questioned, looking at him curiously as Ash and Misty peered at him from behind her.

"Some characters from a second-rate TV show," Max grumbled, adjusting his glasses. It was then that he noticed the two kids May was with and grinned nervously. "Uhh…hi!"

"Hello, there," Misty said with a smile.

"Oh…um, this is my brother, Max," May said awkwardly, glancing back at her new friends.

"So, you're the 'little brat' who chucked water on May this morning," Ash commented. Max froze.

"Uh…heheheh…"

A few minutes later, a girl with a head of blue hair ran through the gates to school, breathing deeply as she adjusted one of the golden clips in her hair.

"Hey Dawn!" Ash called with a goofy grin, seeing her across the courtyard. The girl, Dawn, looked over at him and flashed him a quick smile before leaning against the fence and looking at the road expectantly. She quickly looked away again a few seconds later whilst fixing the smile on her face.

Misty rolled her eyes. "Here we go again…"

Right on cue, a boy with purple hair that fell into his eyes walked through the gate, his hands buried deep in his pockets. Dawn's eyes were fixated on the boy, an intoxicated look on her face as he got closer and closer to her…and then got further and further as he went straight past without so much as a glance. Dawn sighed and her shoulders slumped in disappointment.

She slowly slouched her way over to Misty, Ash, May and Max, looking quite sad. "What will it take for him to notice me? Do I need to dance naked in front of him with neon pink pom-poms?"

"You could try…" Ash said coyly, only to be smacked by Misty. "Or not. Just forget about him, Dawn. If he's not noticed you yet, he's not worth it…"

"Maybe…maybe he's just…nervous? He secretly does love me, I know it, and I just need to get him to open up and admit it!" Dawn said, completely convinced by herself. Ash shook his head.

"If he did love you, he would've done something by now," he said softly, smiling gently at her. Dawn shook her head.

"No. He's just shy, I'm sure of it…oh, hello!" She grinned at May and Max, only just noticing them.

"Oh, hi! I'm May!"

"I'm Max."

"Hey, Max," May said, "why don't you go hang with your own friends?"

"I just got here! I don't know anyone yet!"

"What about the Jack and Liz fan?"

"No way!" Max exclaimed, his arm movements showing his statement was final. May rolled her eyes when the group heard a call from somewhere across the courtyard.

"HEY! MAXIE!"

"Aw great…" Max mumbled, glancing over at the caller over his shoulder. "Fred again…maybe he's not seen me…" The look of hope on Max's face quickly disappeared as 'Fred' – a boy with powder blue hair and violet eyes - began walking over. "Or maybe not…"

"Ah, go on, Max! He can't be that bad!" May laughed, pushing his shoulder lightly, urging him toward Fred.

"Oh yes he can," Max said stubbornly, digging his heels into the ground. "Don't make me go back…please!"

"Play time, Maxie," May teased, giving him a firm shove. Max stumbled forward and was about to scramble back when someone grabbed his arm. He twisted his head around in alarm to see Fred holding his wrist.

"C'mon, Maxie! Gill says he can lend you the first and second series of Valorie Hill!

"Ode to joy…" Max sighed as he was dragged away. He sent a pleading glance over his shoulder at his sister, but May only smiled and waved as he was taken to his doom.

"They grow up so fast," May commented with a giggle.

"I wish I had a little brother or sister," Misty said wistfully. "I'm the youngest of four children. It sucks."

"At least you actually have siblings," Dawn mumbled.

"Hey, who needs siblings when you've got friends?" Ash said brightly, shrugging.

"Hm, I need to get my timetable and stuff," May suddenly realised. "Ash, could you come with me? Show me where to get it?"

"Uh, sure!" Ash replied.

"I'll come too!" Misty blurted out, running after the two as they started walking off.

Dawn stared at them before squeaking in horror, "Don't leave me alone!" and running after them.

_Time skip to break_

May, Misty, Dawn and Max were crowded around a rectangular table in the school cafeteria. The space around them was ridiculously over crowded, and there were still lots more students outside, pressing their faces against the windows, trying to get in from the cold.

"The canteen's a little…cramped, don't you think?" May said, looking around uncomfortably.

"'A little' is an understatement," Max grumbled, his head ducked as he glanced around for Fred and Gill, hoping they wouldn't see him. "Still, at least I won't be found he-"

"Maxie! There you are! You forgot the DVDs!" a voice exclaimed, causing Max to leap into the air in surprise.

"AH!"

"Come on! You can eat at our table!" Fred grinned, grabbing Max's arm and dragging him away. Max tried in vain to hold on to the table, but when Gill – who had silvery hair and misty green eyes - took a hold of his other arm he was wrenched off and taken away through the crowds.

May laughed as she watched him go. "Good to see he's made some friends already!"

"Yeah," Misty agreed. "So, how was double maths?"

"I don't want to speak of it…ever again…" May mumbled.

"That bad, hm? Dawn?" Misty looked over at Dawn for some input, as she'd had maths with May, but the blue-haired girl was staring at something – or someone – across the cafeteria. "Dawn!"

"Ah! Huh? What?"

"Were you staring at Paul again?"

"…No…" Dawn pressed the tips of her fingers together nervously, a sheepish grin on her face. When she realised Misty didn't believe her, she sighed. "Yeah…I was…"

"Why don't you just go and talk to him?" May asked.

"Because whenever I do, something bad happens! Like I trip over or drop my things or my bag breaks! And then he just rolls his eyes, tilts his head slightly, sighs, calls me troublesome and walks off, slipping his right hand into his pocket a few seconds before doing the same with his left."

"…Okay…" May blinked, amazed by the amount of detail Dawn gave. "That bad, huh?"

"Yeah…but I won't give up! I'll have him!" Dawn promised, seconds away from standing up and slamming her hand on the table. Luckily, Ash came before those seconds could pass.

"Hey guys!" he said with a grin. "Hey Dawn, something wrong?"

"Hey Ash…" May and Misty sang at the same time.

Dawn raised her eyebrows at them before replying to Ash, "No…"

"You sure? If something's wrong, you know you can tell me, Dawn," he said to her softly with a gentle smile as he placed his hand on her arm.

"Yeah…well…it's just Paul, I can't stop thinking about him!"

Ash's expression went sour. "Him again?"

"It's always him, Ash," Misty laughed.

"Hm." Ash frowned, clearly unhappy that it was 'always him'.

Just then, the bell rang, signalling for the students to go back to lessons. May, Misty, Ash and Dawn fought their way through the crowds and managed to be first out. Well, with the exception of Paul who had managed to bundle himself in front and was now slouching down the corridor, very aware of the blue pair of eyes on him.

_Period/Lesson 3_

English:

May and Dawn were sitting at the back of an English classroom, listening as the teacher rambled on about the meaning behind the halter chains in Of Mice and Men.

"Hey…May, I've been meaning to ask you," Dawn suddenly said, lifting her head from her hand. "Since I first met you…it's just…do you have a crush on Ash?"

"What? Of course not! I've only just met him!" May exclaimed.

"It only took me ten minutes to fall for Paul," Dawn said with a happy sigh. "You've known Ash for over two hours, now."

"Well…maybe a little…" May admitted, flushing a little and looking away.

"That's what I thought." Dawn smiled triumphantly, but there was turmoil in her head. _Oh man, Misty also likes Ash…I'd better make sure neither find out the other does…I don't know how they'd react. _

* * *

**Yeah, kind of rubbish…sorry 'bout that.**

**I HAVE A REQUEST! PLEASE! I WANT YOUR MOST HONEST OPINIONS! THANK YOU!**

**Information that may be interesting:**

**The school has seven 'years' (Like in Harry Potter)**

**1****st**** year (age 11/12) **

**2****nd**** year (age 12/13)**

**3****rd**** year (age 13/14)**

**4****th**** year (age 14/15)**

**5****th**** year (age 15/16)**

**6****th**** year (age 16/17)**

**7****th**** year (age 17/18)**

**Ages:**

**Dawn is 15 and in 5****th**** year.**

**May is 16 and in 5****th**** year.**

**Ash is 16 and in 6****th**** year.**

**Misty is 17 and in 7****th**** year.**

**Paul is 17 and in 7****th**** year. **

**Max is 13 and in 3****st**** year. **

**Yes, Max WILL be a main character…I love him that much. **

**I'm English, so I'm sorry if you get confused by anything. But some mix ups may be…**

**(English= American)**

**Form= homeroom. **

**Trousers= pants**

**Football= soccor**

**Rugby= Football **

**Jam= jelly**

**Jelly= jello**

**Erm, that's all that I can think of at the mo.**

**A 'period' is a lesson. There are six periods in a day. It is structured like so:**

_**Form/Homeroom**_** -**** Period 1**** – ****Period 2**** – **_**break**_** – ****Period 3**** – ****Period 4**** – **_**Lunch**_** – ****Period 5**** – ****Period 6**

**That's all for now!**

**Read and Review please! **


	2. Chapter 2: A School Trip

**Aaaaaaannnnnnnd…chapter two! The other characters are actually doing stuff in this chapter! Yay! I don't own any of the characters apart from Katrina and Liam. **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

It was a cold, rainy Tuesday, exactly three weeks and a day since May had arrived, and Dawn was charging down the street, glancing at her watch. 8:16 am. She had only a minute and a half to get to school if she was going to get there before Paul – as was her daily ritual. However, it was becoming clear that she wasn't going to get there in time. She was a five minute run from the gates, and if she had just over a minute…

Dawn sighed, her shoulders dropping. In her rush to get out, she had forgotten her hat and scarf, her coat and her umbrella, and she was freezing! She shivered and rubbed her bare arms, feeling the skin prickle beneath her fingers. It was then that she heard footsteps near her and glanced around until she saw a boy, a couple of years older than her, walking down the street, his hands in his pockets and his purple-crowned head bowed. It was Paul!

"P-Paul?" Dawn called out hopefully. The boy stopped and turned his head briefly.

"Hm." He ignored her and carried on walking. Dawn felt her heart fall and sped up to catch up with him.

"Hey! Paul!" she yelped. He stopped once more, giving her the chance to run up next to him.

"What?"

Blushing darkly, Dawn offered him a shaky smile. "Um…hi…"

"…Who are you?"

"What do you mean 'who am I'!" Dawn exclaimed, a new rage building up inside, almost drowning out the hurt she felt that he didn't know who she was.

Paul rolled his eyes. Dawn carried on glaring as she shivered.

"Brr, it's cold."

"That's what a jacket's for," Paul said coldly as he sped up. Dawn scrambled to keep up.

"I kind of forgot my jacket…"

"Troublesome…" Paul muttered, growling as his attempt to put some distance between them failed.

Dawn lowered her eyes, all her focus was on rubbing her arms in attempt to warm them up. She was mumbling through chattering teeth under her breath. Paul scowled but, a few seconds later Dawn felt a warm weight fall on her shoulders.

"Huh-?" Dawn glanced up, only to find Paul's jacket on her back, still heated from his body. "Thanks…" she mumbled, pulling it tighter around her.

Paul said nothing, but instead walked in silence. They got to the school gates only a few minutes later. Dawn quickly handed him back his jacket, but as soon as it was in his hand, he was making his way away from her. With an infatuated smile on her face, she skipped over to Misty, Ash and May who were standing in the reception area. Misty raised an eyebrow at Dawn's soppy grin.

"What's gotten you so happy?"

"Paul…he leant me his coat on the way to school…" Dawn sighed.

"He did!" May and Misty yelped at the same time.

"You were walking with Paul?" Ash asked through gritted teeth.

"Yeah! I didn't mean to, I was walking to school and there he was, so I ran to catch up with him…and he leant me his coat 'cause I was cold."

"Aw, how romantic!" May sighed.

"Yeah…" Misty agreed.

"Hm." Ash frowned, somewhat miffed.

Dawn didn't notice this. Her mind was far away and full of thoughts of Paul.

Nearby, Drew was leaning against a wall, around a corner were he could see May and friends, but they wouldn't be able to see him. He thought he was quite alone as he watched them, a somewhat sulky look on his face, when a voice spoke from next to him.

"What'cha doing?"

Drew almost jumped out of his skin when a girl with long brown hair seemingly appeared out of nowhere next to him.

"Leaf! What was that for?" he hissed, glancing over at May and co to see if they had heard him. They hadn't so he looked back at Leaf.

"Just wandering what you were doing," Leaf said with a small pout.

"Nothing. Just…standing here…Go annoy Gary or something."

"Hmph. You're nice," she mumbled. "Besides, I don't annoy him. He annoys me."

"You both annoy each other," Drew decided. "Now, go away,"

"Aw, why?"

"Because."

"What are you two up to then?" a new voice asked. Drew scowled.

"Gary? What do you want?"

"Nothing," Gary replied, crossing his arms nonchalantly.

"Mmhm. Sure."

"What? It's true!"

Leaf sighed, having fallen silent during the back and forth. Feeling ignored, she mumbled a 'bye' a slumped off to talk to someone else. As soon as she'd left, Drew smirked.

"I know why you were here."

"Oh?"

"You think something was going on between Leaf and I," Drew said. And by the look on Gary's face, he was right.

"I do not!"

"Yeah you do. Everyone knows you like her."

"Everyone but her," he grumbled.

"Still. You've got nothing to worry about. Nothing would happen between us."

"Well, I'm just…worried, I guess," he admitted. "She has a crush on y-" He stopped suddenly.

"Pfft, 'course she has a crush on me, almost everyone does," Drew said.

"Everyone but May, obviously," Gary noted, glancing over at the group nearby.

"She'll come to eventually," Drew replied with confidence. A thin blush suddenly crept across his cheeks. "Uh, not like I care, of course," he quickly added.

"Tch," Gary scoffed. "'Course you care. That's why you're so annoyed with Ash. You think she likes him."

"Who would like him?" Drew laughed nervously.

"May."

"What?"

"Yeah. Turns out both May and Misty have a crush on him. And I'm beginning to suspect Leaf does too…"

"Pfft, who doesn't she have a crush on?"

"Me."

"Seriously?"

Gary scowled. "Yes."

"Hey Liam! What'cha doin'?"

A boy with pale red hair leapt about five feet, dropping the book he was reading and spinning on the spot. One of his hands flew up to hold his pair of rimless glasses on. "Oh…hey Leaf…" he said, sounding a little breathless.

"What'cha reading?" Leaf asked, picking up the book he had dropped and studying it. "'Rome- The City of B-"

"It's for my History work," Liam said quietly, hastily taking it back. "I'm doing a project on Ancient Rome…"

"I see," Leaf commented with a wide smile.

"Yeah…" Liam trailed off, looking at something behind Leaf. Leaf frowned when she realised his gaze was focussed else where and glanced behind her to see a girl with shoulder length orange hair, scowling at someone who was obviously annoying her. Leaf was about to say something when the bell went for form. "See you around," Liam said quickly before darting off. Leaf sighed and walked in the other direction, heading for her own form.

At five minutes before first period was due to start, the speakers on the ceiling of every room whirred into life and relayed the following message:

"_Greetings students of Totehall. In two weeks there is a week-long field trip to Fuscilia Isle. There are limited places, so if you are interested, put your name on the list on the Principle's Office door. It is on a first come-first serve basis. There are letters about the trip available at reception. Have a nice day."_

"Sounds cool," Ash commented with a grin, though more to himself as he was stuck on a table with Drew.

"Yeah, but only if you can't afford to go to Drusilia Isle."

"Drusilia Isle?" Ash questioned.

"It's…Fuscilia's better sister, I guess. I've been there several times with my family."

"Well…I'll bet Fuscilia is really pretty! Maybe Dawn would like to go…" Ash said thoughtfully. Drew paused, his thoughts drifting to May. Sadly, they were interrupted by the teacher telling them to clear off and go to first period.

_Break_

As soon as History was over for Ash, the raven-haired boy was down at the principle's office like a dart, one hand enclosed around Dawn's arm, whom he had luckily ran into on his way down.

"I think we should go!" Ash said as Dawn looked at the list.

"Hm…yeah! Okay! It sounds pretty good!" Dawn agreed. Ash grabbed the pen hanging next to the list by a length of string and scrawled his name down. Dawn did the same and had half turned around to follow Ash to the cafeteria when she got an idea. After glancing around, she took up the pen again and wrote down Paul's name before scurrying after Ash.

Not a minute had passed when Misty walked by and noticed Ash's name on the list. Seeing Dawn's name was also there, she wrote her name down underneath and walked off.

May came by next and, like Misty, saw Ash's name there so wrote hers down too.

The next to come by was Drew, who had just caught May writing her name down and, feeling slightly jealous upon reading Ash's name there, wrote his name down as well. His eyes swept the surrounding corridor shortly after, not really wanting people to see him write his name down to go on a second-rate school trip to some random island.

Leaf and Gary fell victim to the list after him. Leaf was dragging him down to see something when she saw the list and took a glance at the names. Paul _and_ Drew were going. Excited by the prospect, she scribbled her name down too, telling Gary it sounded interesting. Gary wrote his name down afterwards, agreeing with her.

When they had gone, Liam found himself putting his name and Katrina's name down. Through the hustle and bustle of school life, he found it difficult to talk to her. Not to mention she actually scared him a little, especially when she was angry. Perhaps the calming air of the island would make her more…approachable.

That evening, in the Maple household, May was telling her parents about the trip. "And we get to stay in a really nice hotel by the beach! Did I mention the beach? It's huge! With really white sand. And there's a rock garden and a flower garden and a butterfly garden…"

"Yes, honey, we know," Caroline said, smiling. "You've already mentioned that."

"Well, it sounds really cool!"

"Hm, when did you say it was?"

"Not next week, but the week after," May replied.

"Hm…"

"What's not next week, but the week after?" Max asked, walking into the room half way through the conversation.

"The school trip to Fuscilia Isle," May replied. "I'm going."

"What? You're leaving me!" Max yelped. "I need you!"

"What's wrong with Fred and Gill?" May smirked.

"Everything! They don't talk about anything but that stupid TV show…"

"Have you even watched it yet?" his sister asked.

"I'd sooner eat it," Max mumbled.

"What's this? Who's Fred and Gill?" Caroline asked, looking between her two children.

"Maxie's new friends," May replied.

"Ah, that's nice. Why don't you invite them round for dinner one day?"

Max paled at the thought. "Uhhh, no, that's alright. Hey, can I go on the school trip too?"

"Sorry, it's not open to students below fourth year," May said quickly. "You'll be fine without me for a week.

"No I won't! I'll have gone mad by Tuesday!"

* * *

**Sorry it's so short…heheheh…**

**Important bits/main points:**

**Dawn is STILL helplessly in love with Paul, but he doesn't seem to reciprocate the feeling exactly.**

**Ash is kind of jealous of Paul.**

**Drew has a crush on May**

**Leaf has a crush on Liam, Paul and Drew. **

**Gary has a crush on Leaf.**

**Liam has a crush on Katrina, but is absolutely terrified of her.**

**There is a school trip to Fuscilia Isle.**

**People going are Ash, Dawn, Paul, Misty, May, Drew, Leaf, Gary, Liam and Katrina.**

**Max wants to go to escape the horrors of Fred and Gill.**

**I think that's all of it…**

**Read and Review, please!**


	3. Bonus Chapter: Shadows of the Past

**Bonus chapter...'cause I felt like posting it. Heheh...It may or may not be important later; (I like keeping my possible plot lines/twists open) but there are some bits of information in here which may be referenced to. (Taps nose mysteriously)**

**I don't own any of the characters...oh, apart from Paul's mum and dad. Heheh...**

**Chapter three of the story coming up straight after this!**

* * *

When Paul arrived home that evening, the day the announcement had been made in school concerning the trip to Fuscilia, he dumped his coat in his brother's arms.

"It needs to be washed."

"Huh?" Reggie Shinji blinked at his brother a few times then at the coat. He held it up by the tips of his fingers in front of his face and peered at it. "But I washed this yesterday! It can't have gotten dirty already!"

"It's contaminated," Paul replied gruffly, already making his way up to his room.

"By what?"

Paul paused briefly, considering the answer, and then said to his brother, "A girl," before disappearing into the gloom of his room and shutting the door behind him.

Reggie shook his head at his brother, rolled his eyes, and walked into the utility room, dropping the coat into the almost full wash basket by the washing machine. That kid was lucky he had been about to do a wash.

Paul sighed heavily as he sat down on his bed. His bag had been flung in the corner with his school stuff spilling out over the floor. His room was quite neat. The walls were pale cream – "magnolia," his brother had called it with relish – and the floor was a dark, almost black, red. A desk was against the wall, next to a book shelf half filled with hardbacks. A dark-wooded chest of drawers stood next to his made bed. The floor was completely free of clothes and paper, and his desk had the essentials, such as pencils and pens, arranged neatly in square pots.

The only decoration in the room came in the form of three pictures on the wall. Two were old school photos. The first featured a group of 13-14 year olds, grinning happily at the camera, arranged in three neat rows. However, amongst the sea of smiles was a scowl. A child with plum-coloured hair stood at the edge of the group, not as close as he perhaps should have been.

The other was of the same boy, but this time it was a close up and featured his brother. Reggie was smiling widely, yet sadly, with one arm around his younger brother's shoulders. Again, the young Paul was scowling, and looked like he was about to tear his brother's hand from his shoulder.

The last photo, however, was older and depicted four people. Paul and Reggie were a few years younger in the photo, and both were smiling. The other two were both adults. The woman was pretty with shoulder-length violet hair and dark eyes. Her hands were laid on both brothers' shoulders and she was looking down at them, rather than the camera, with love and affection. The man had light hair, blond perhaps, and had his arm around his wife, grinning at the camera.

Paul found himself staring at the picture. Darn Reggie…his annoying brother had nailed the pictures to the wall, and try as he might, Paul just couldn't get them down without ripping the wall…and that wouldn't have made his brother happy. Quite the contrary, and when Reggie was mad – properly mad – even Paul got scared.

He heaved a sigh and lay down, reflecting on the day. Lessons were the same as ever: acceptable and useful, though somewhat boring. Although Spanish wasn't…Spanish was never. It was a useless subject in his eyes. Like he was ever going to go to Spain.

And, as usual, he had been followed almost all day by that troublesome girl. That wasn't new; she'd been doing that since he first met her…well, if you could count being tackled to the ground 'meeting'. And since then, she'd been nothing but a nuisance. She couldn't even keep up an intelligent conversation, or any conversation, without falling over or stumbling over her words. Women…

But if he found her so annoying, why the heck had he given her his jacket? And, in the process, let her contaminate it? Had he felt…sorry for her?

_No_, he quickly told himself. _No, I didn't feel sorry for her. Feeling sorry for people implies getting close…and getting close only ends in disaster…_ Again, his eyes drifted to the picture of him and his family, but before his mind could wander, he smacked his head with his fist, ignoring the pain. _Don't go there. Don't even think about it. That was in the past. _

But that hadn't answered his question. Why had he given her his jacket? _I know_, he thought smugly, _her shivering was annoying me. Solution: get her warm. No, that involved being…nice. I am not nice. Beside, if it was annoying me, I could have just walked away from her. She would've caught up though. She may be weak, but she's stubborn._

"Why am I even thinking about her?" Paul grumbled to himself, shaking his head. Troublesome girl. He couldn't get rid of her, even in his own home. In his room. In his private sanctuary.

"Hey, Paul. You alright?" Paul looked up to find Reggie in his door way, leaning against the frame, regarding him carefully.

"Hn."

Reggie barked out a laugh and walked into the room, ignoring Paul's death glares, and sat down on the side of the bed. "C'mon, Paul. Something's up. Is it something to do with the girl that 'contaminated' your jacket?"

Paul gave him a sharp glower.

"…I'm going to take that as a yes. Don't be daft, Paul. Girls aren't contagious! What happened, anyway?"

"What's it to you?"

"I'm only looking out for my little brother!" Reggie replied in a slightly babyish voice, which he dropped as soon as he heard Paul growl. "Seriously, what happened?"

"She was cold and…and her shivering was annoying me so I gave her my jacket," Paul replied darkly, sitting up and glaring at the floor.

"How romantic!" Reggie gushed with a sigh. "Do you like her Paul?"

"No." was Paul's harsh reply.

"Well…who was she, anyway?"

"Some annoying girl."

"Name?"

"…" Paul was silent for a bit before sighing. "Dawn."

"Dawn Berlitz?" Paul nodded. "With the blue hair? Pretty? Wears a lot of pink and black?" Again, Paul nodded. "Ha! You agreed that she was pretty!"

"Reggie!" Paul scowled, his cheeks tinting ever so slightly pink.

Reggie laughed. "I'm sorry. So, you gave your jacket to Dawn? Ah, that's so sweet!"

"…How do you know her, anyway?" Paul asked, shifting the subject slightly.

"She pops around the pet shop sometimes," Reggie answered. "She likes looking at the animals. Says she'd like one, but she's not sure if it would be a good idea."

"Hn." Paul fell silent, obviously not in the mood to talk about it. Reggie sighed.

"I keep telling her to ask her mum, but she refuses. I've a good mind to go to her house and ask for her."

"Why would you bother?" Paul asked, glancing at him.

"It would make her happy." Reggie shrugged. "I like seeing people happy."

"Hm. Whatever."

"You should try it someday, Paul," Reggie said. "You may have more friends, if you did."

"I don't need friends."

"'Course you do! Not once have you had a friend round! Not since-"

"Don't even mention them."

Reggie shook his head. "You can't keep running from the past, Paul."

"I'm not running."

"You are." Reggie gave him a look, leaning his elbows on his knees. He then shifted his gaze to the photo on the wall. "Look how happy you were back then. I've not seen you smile in years."

"I wonder why."

"You know Paul," Reggie started, his voice bleeding through with annoyance, "running from the past isn't being strong. It's weak. Not accepting it and moving on is not helping you or me or anyone. If you were really strong, you would learn to forget about it and get on with your life."

"Don't you tell me how to live my life!" Paul yelled, jumping to his feet and growling at his brother.

"Maybe if you got a life, I would be telling you how to live it!" Reggie stood, his eyes narrowing at his brother.

"Don't you speak to me like that! I'm not the weak one! You are! You're the one who was always running away! I stood and fought."

"You were an idiot! You almost got yourself killed."

"BETTER DIE BRAVE THAN LIVE A COWARD!"

"BETTER LIVE TRYING TO HELP THAN DIE BEING AN IDIOT!"

Both brothers went silent, glaring at each other and breathing deeply. Paul pointed to the door, his eyes like slits of ice.

"Get out," he said coldly.

"Paul, you ca-"

"I SAID GET OUT!" Paul roared. Reggie didn't wait to be asked twice and left the room without a second glance, closing it firmly behind him. Paul let out an irritated growl and sat back down on his bed. He grabbed his pillow and threw it at the picture on the wall. Something hard within the pillow thudded against the glass. The pillow tumbled down to the bed, leaving a spider web of cracks in the glass, obscuring the photo.

Paul frowned and clambered over, opening the case and peering inside. There was a book – small with a dark leather cover. He reached in and pulled out the book. The front was bare, bar the small, gold writing at the bottom left corner displaying the maker's name.

He frowned and turned over the front cover, memories already rushing back like a flash flood. The first page was half coloured in with shades of red, blue and purple. On top of the clash of colour was written a few words in thick, black pen.

_**Paul Shinji's -**__**Diary-**__** Journal **_(The word diary had been crossed out)

Paul scowled. It was the journal he had kept as a kid. He didn't use it now, of course. Heck, he didn't even know that he had it. He must have hidden it in his pillow case and forgotten about it. He guessed Reggie replaced it every time his bed dressings were washed.

Paul sighed and was about to throw it in the bin but stopped. He had the urge to read it, to find out things about the past. His past, yes, but some facts deteriorate from the mind over time. He turned the page and was met with pages that were only half filled. The writing was large, clunky and messy.

He started reading but soon got bored. The first half of the book was of petty issues and typical events for a young, innocent boy. Things got more interesting, however, when he tried to turn the page but found the next few slightly stuck together.

He peeled them apart and found that areas of the pages were wrinkled, as if they had been wet once upon a time. The wrinkled areas were in circles, suggesting they had been made by tears. Paul pressed his lips together. Crying was a sign of weakness.

These entries were from several years ago, when he was about twelve or thirteen and Reggie a couple of years older. He read from when the whole storm started. The wind picked up when Paul's father, Tom, had noticed his wife (Paul's mother), Mary, going out a lot more. The fact she gave Tom the same story every time only added fuel to the flames.

And then Tom snapped.

"_I'm just going out with some friends," Mary said, grabbing her keys, her high heels clicking on the pavement as she stepped out the door. _

"_Which ones?" Tom asked, a hint of suspicion in his voice. _

"_Lauren and Cathy," she called. The door closed behind her and Tom sighed. He got up and raced to the window, watching her walk down the street and disappearing from sight. Two young boys watched from the stairs._

"_Is mum going again?" twelve-year-old Paul asked. Tom nodded sadly. Paul's shoulders drooped. "But…she promised to play with me today…"_

"_Come on, Paulie," Reggie said, grinning as he flung an arm around Paul's shoulders. "I'll play with you!"_

_Paul shrugged him off. "No! I want mum to play!" _

"_Paul, play with your brother. I'm going out, you two. Reggie, you're in charge," Tom said, a look of determination on his face. "If the house hasn't burnt down when I get back, I'll give you a tenner."_

"_Okay, dad!" Reggie said cheerfully. Tom smiled at his two boys before heading out the door. It didn't take long for the two brothers to start playing whatever games they could think of. Reggie, however, was careful to make sure they didn't leave a mess. It was nine o'clock when Tom arrived home. Reggie had just told Paul to go to bed when the front door opened and closed. Reggie ran down the stairs to greet his father. _

"_Hey dad! The house didn't burn down!" he said proudly. Tom blinked then smiled slowly. _

"_Oh yeah…good job, buddy!" he praised. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a note and threw it to Reggie, who managed to catch it. _

"_Thanks dad!" Reggie said, rushing upstairs again to put his earnings away. When he came down again, Tom had collapsed in his arm chair, a can of beer in his hand. His eyes were dull and his hair messy, as if he had run his fingers through it numerous times. It looked like he had aged twenty years in the few hours he was gone. _

_Reggie sat down on the sofa. Tom was staring blankly at the TV set, despite the fact it wasn't actually one. _

"_Do you want me to turn the TV on dad?" Reggie asked. Tom didn't react. Reggie took it as a yes and switched on the set. He flicked through the channels until he found something his dad might like. _

_The News?_

_Tom didn't react._

_Crime fiction?_

_Tom didn't react._

_Sport?_

_Tom didn't react._

_My Little Pony?_

_Tom didn't react._

_Reggie sighed and flicked it back to the football. His dad liked football, he knew that. "So, dad…did you have fun out? ...Did you do anything interesting? …Did you-"_

"_Do your old man a favour and get me another beer would you, Reg?" Tom requested. Reggie obeyed and got up to go to the kitchen, returning with another can of beer. Tom took it thankfully. _

_By the time the clock stroke ten, Tom was opening his fifth beer. Reggie was getting worried. Tom seemed to have finally come to terms with his surroundings and was getting very into the football game, booing and hissing and cheering as if there were no tomorrow. _

_It was half past ten and Tom was almost finished with his seventh. Reggie knew this couldn't be good for him. When he requested an eighth can, Reggie put his foot down. _

"_No, dad. You've had enough," he said firmly. Tom frowned, as if not able to comprehend that his son was keeping him from his beer. _

"_No, I want another beer."_

"_You've had enough."_

"_I need another one. GET ME A BEER!" _

_Reggie jumped to his feet and stumbled backwards, but still refused to get him another. Tom growled and got up from his chair, staggering toward the kitchen door. Reggie tried valiantly to block him off but he was shoved roughly aside. Tom returned to the sitting room with three six-packs. Reggie blanched in horror and what his dad was doing to himself. But he didn't understand why. _

_Forty five minutes, and three-and-a-half beers later, all hell broke loose. Mary clicked through the doorway to find her husband slouched in a squashy arm chair, surrounded by beer cans and the smell of drunkenness clinging to his clothes. Reggie was still in the room, in the corner, watching his father worriedly. There was a bruise on the side of his face – a battle wound from trying to take some of his father's unopened cans away from him. _

"_Tom, stop that. You've had enough, I think," Mary said. _

"_You!" Tom screamed. He staggered to his feet and let out a slightly jumbled yell at his wife. Reggie knew at once this was not something he was meant to hear and ran upstairs to Paul's room. _

_The younger brother was asleep, thank goodness. Reggie settled himself on the floor by the bed, staring downwards. Below, he could hear the sounds of his parents arguing. Most was just a low rumble, but he did pick up a few words._

"_How DARE y-…"_

"_I SAW IT WITH MY OWN EYES!"_

"_You! You were-…."_

"_Don't lie to me!"  
_

"_I'm not! It was-…"  
_

"_You don-…DO YOU?"_

_Reggie glanced up worryingly at his sleeping brother. If he was honest, he was surprised that Paul could sleep through the racket they were making. But it didn't take long for things to get a lot louder. A cry, a yell…_

_BANG._

_And then a scream. _

_Paul woke up, sitting straight as a ruler. He looked at Reggie, eyes wide. "Did you hear that?" Reggie nodded silently. Paul leapt out of bed and made a beeline for the door, grabbing his dressing gown as he did so. _

"_No! Paul! Come back!" Reggie yelled, running after him. Paul thundered down the stairs and flung open the door to the sitting room. Tom was trembling all over. His eyes were bloodshot and mad. In his shaking hands he held a small pistol. It was pointing at Mary, who stood pressed against the wall. Next to her head was a small, black circle where the bullet had embedded itself in the wall. Mary swung her head to look at her two sons._

"_Leave!" she cried. She didn't want them to get mixed up in the fight; they would probably get hurt. Reggie was already ready to get out of the house and find a way to contact the police. But Paul wouldn't budge. _

"_Paul, come on! We've got to get out of here," Reggie said, trying to drag him out. _

"_We've got to help her!" Paul said. He didn't want to leave his mother alone with the gun-wielding madman his father had become. _

"_There's nothing we can do!" _

_Paul battled his way from Reggie's grip, inches from the door, and tackled Tom from behind. Tom yelped and glared at his son, his eyes flashing dangerously. "Let go of me, boy," he snarled. Paul, who was holding on to Tom's shirt, refused. Reggie ran forward to pull Paul off of him. Mary was screaming. Tom was tightening his grip on the gun, bringing it up to point at the youngest child…_

"_Don't you dare! DON'T YOU DARE!" Mary screeched, launching herself off of the wall._

_Everything else happened very quickly._

_A gun shot._

_A shriek._

_A horrible realisation. _

"_No. NO!"_

_BANG._

_Paul and Reggie were quite alone. _

_Paul trembled all over. He let go of his father's shirt and clambered off him. Reggie helped him to his feet. The bodies of their parents lay side by side, stretched on the floor; their faces were pictures of anguish. The gun was in Tom's dead hand, the barrel pointing toward the bloodied hole in his head. A pool of scarlet blood was slowly spreading out across the floor underneath Mary's body. _

_Paul was frozen in shock. Reggie leant sideways and picked up the phone. _

"_Hello? Police?"_

Paul shook his head of that fateful day. He stood by what he had said before; he was strong for trying to protect his mother and Reggie was weak for trying to run away. It was as simple as that. Glancing at his clock, he realised he had been reminiscing for two hours. The whole story hadn't been written in the diary; a lot of it had happened whilst he was asleep, but Reggie had filled those parts in for him a few months later.

He had stopped using the diary after that. The rest of the pages were blank. Paul sighed and got up from his bed before heading down stairs. Reggie was in the kitchen, making tea. Hearing the door open and close, the older brother looked up and smiled. "Good to see you've finally emerged. What were you doing up there?"

"None of your business."

Reggie rolled his eyes. Same old Paul. "Well, if you don't want to tell me, that's fine." There was a pause as both brothers looked at each other.

"She was cheating on him, you know."

Paul's head snapped back up. "What?"

"Mum. She'd been cheating on him for years. There were at least five men she'd been with throughout their marriage." Reggie paused before carrying on. His voice was quiet, reserved…barely a whisper, but Paul listened intently and heard every word.

"The night…it happened…dad followed her out. He saw her with another man. He was angry and had a few too many beers. He told me…when you were asleep. In his last moments of sanity, he told me everything. His suspicions, worries…all he'd seen."

When Reggie finished, Paul got up and left without another word. Not only had his father betrayed his mother…but she had betrayed him. And that did it.

He wouldn't allow _anyone_ to get close to him. _Ever._

* * *

**Heh, funny…this ended up being longer than most chapters. I thought it would be shorter. Hm, oh well. **

**Kind of random back story for Paul, I know. Oh well…he's upset now. Poor Paulie…**

**Paul: You sadist.**

**Me: That's me! Hyuh! **

**Review please! Although, I am uploading this at the same time as chapter three sooooooooo…yeah...**


	4. Chapter 3: A Day in the Life

**As promised, this is being uploaded with the bonus chapter. **

**I don't own anything except for Katrina, Liam and some random characters who just fill empty space. **

**Review please!**

* * *

A few days later, letters were sent to all the people going on the trip. There were twenty-two in all, though a few, mainly Paul and Katrina, were quite confused when their letters came as neither had a memory of volunteering to do it. However, with neither being the type to back away from things, they decided to go anyway.

"Hey! Maxie! You watched the DVDs, yet?" Fred asked eagerly, dragging Max to a nearby bench. Max looked sadly over his shoulder as his sister and her friends disappeared from sight, and sighed.

"Uh, not yet…the DVD player is still broken…"

"Still?" Gill asked in disbelief. "Wow…you should probably get a new one!"

"Yeah, that one's obviously rubbish! Every time you fix it, it breaks again!" Fred agreed.

"Yeah…well…dad said we can't," Max said.

"Why not?"

"'Cause…um…he's…allergic?"

"I didn't know you could be allergic to DVD players!" Fred exclaimed.

"Um…yeah…but only new ones! It's the way they're made, see. He's alright with older ones, but we can't find any older ones and we can't get a new one or dad would be sneezing all the time," Max said, obviously making it up on the spot. Gill and Fred, however, remained oblivious.

"Wow, tough luck. Well, keep Valorie Hill as long as you like. I pretty much know the seasons off by heart."

"Yeah…I know…"

"But you seriously need to watch Series one, Episode seven. It's so sad! That bit where Jack is all like, 'I'm sorry, Liz, but I-I just can't go on like this'."

"And then Liz is all like, 'What? Why not?'"

"'Because I know about Victor.'"

"'Huh? Victor? But…he's just a friend!'"

"'Then why did I catch him with his tongue down your throat the other day?'"

"'I-I can explain!'"

"'No. I don't want to hear it. I can't go on. It's not you, it's me.'"

"'Jack! No! Wait! I don't want this to end!'"

"'It has to, Liz. All good things do.'"

Whilst Fred and Gill pretty much acted out the episode of Valorie Hill, Max managed to slip away. "Pfft, those script writers fail. 'It's not you, it's me.' What does that mean? 'It's my fault you were making out with Victor!' Tch, as if."

"What's up with you, Maxie?" May asked in a teasing tone as he scampered over to her.

Max cringed at the nickname. "Who needs a DVD player when you have those two?" he asked, nodding his head at Fred and Gill, who hadn't seemed to have noticed Max's disappearance

"Okay…"

**_At Lunch_**

"So, Dawn, you going to the Spanish lessons tonight?" May asked with a laugh. Dawn nodded.

"Si! Desde luego!" Dawn replied in perfect Spanish. May blinked a few times.

"Uhh…"

"I said 'Yes, of course!'" Dawn said with a sheepish grin.

"I still don't get why you go to them," Ash said, after swallowing a large amount of food. "Your Spanish is fine."

"Well, it's because Paul goes to them-" Dawn explained but was cut off by a sigh from him.

"Him again…"

"Ash! Huh? What was that?" Dawn panicked as she felt something brush against her leg. Something…alive…

"I felt it too," Misty said with a frown.

"So did I," May added.

"Same here," Ash said. All four peered under the table simultaneously to find…a pair of blue eyes behind square glasses looking at them.

"Hide me!" Max cried. "They're acting out that stupid scene, again! But this time they want me to be Victor and interrupt them!"

"No. I don't want to hear it. I can't go on. It's not you, it's me." The dramatic sentence floated through the cafeteria, landing like acid in Max's ears.

May rolled her eyes. "I'll be back in a second," she said, picking up her empty plate to put away when she found three other plates thrown on top. Her arms buckling under the unexpected weight, she gave her friends a quick glare before walking off.

Unfortunately for her, someone had dropped a dollop of stuff, which they could only hope was chocolate sauce, on the floor and May just so happened to step on it. Her foot slid against it and she found herself falling, the plates slipping from her hands. A wail of surprise escaped her.

And the next thing she knew, the floor was stuck a couple of feet from her face and the plates were floating next to her head. Something hard, like a bar, was on her stomach, keeping her off the ground. She slowly looked up with wide eyes that narrowed as soon as she saw the green eyes smirking at her.

"Drew."

"You sound so happy to see me, May."

"There must be something wrong with your ears then."

"Maybe I shouldn't've caught you then," Drew mused as he pushed her back to her feet so she could stand on her own. It just so happened that she had slipped near the conveyer belt for dirty plates, so he dropped the tower of plates on that before looking back at May.

May glared at him, dusting herself off. "Thanks," she mumbled reluctantly. Drew chuckled.

"No harm done. Just try to be more careful next time and less of a klutz."

"I'm not a klutz!" May shrieked. "I slipped on something!"

"Now, now, now, May. No need to make a scene."

May flushed and glanced around. Sure enough, over half of the students in the cafeteria were staring at them. She growled and sent Drew one last glare before stomping back to her table.

"Stupid, arrogant prat," she mumbled, sitting down. Max had settled himself down in one of the chairs, as crouching under the table was not very comfortable. He looked over at May with a look of amusement.

"You know, there's a thin line between love and hate."

"Not thin enough in this case," May mumbled darkly. "I hate that jerk, and that's something that won't change."

**Elsewhere**

"So, Kat…rina…Katrina, are you going on that trip to Fuscilia?" Liam asked a ginger girl shyly. Katrina looked at him in surprise.

"Yeah…I don't know why, though. I never put my name down."

Liam paused as for a second he had a horrible feeling she had worked out what had happened. He then told himself he was being ridiculous and mentally shook his head. "Um…maybe the school thought you could benefit from it?"

"And what's that meant to mean?" Katrina asked, narrowing her eyes. "You saying I'm stressy?"

"No!" Liam squeaked. "What I mean is…maybe…they thought you'd enjoy it? In a good way!"

"…Eh, I don't know. This school works in weird ways." Katrina shrugged nonchalantly, obviously not bothered about the matter. Liam sighed in relief.

"Yeah, weird school…" he agreed. "So…um…hey, do y-"

"Hey Liam!"

"Gah!"

"…Hey Leaf."

"Oh, hi Katty."

Katrina scowled darkly, glaring at Leaf chatting happily at Liam who was looking slightly bemused.

**_Fifth Period: Maths with Ash, Gary and Leaf_**

The maths classroom was set up with four rows of desks, each row with eight places, and each row split by an aisle, leaving four spaces on each side. At the back, on one half-row of four sat Ash Ketchum, Gary Oak, Leaf Green and another girl, who was renowned for being quiet and forever scribbling away in her notebook, a journalist in training. Her name was Hillary Crush.

The class had been set a work sheet to do on Trigonometry. Ash was frowning deeply, reading the first question to himself again and again. Leaf was doodling in the margin, quite bored. Gary was staring out of the window, not even bothering to look at the sheet. Hillary, however, was already over halfway through the sheet, and not showing any signs of being stuck or confused. Ash glanced over at her then back at his worksheet, pouting at his weak attempts of answering the question.

_**Work out angle x**__ (2 marks)_

Unable to take it any more, he nudged her slightly. "Um…hey…what's the answer to number one?"

"You should work it out on your own," Hillary replied stiffly in a breathy voice before huffing and going back to her work. Ash paused then nudged her again.

"…How do I work it out?" he whispered.

Hillary looked up and sighed. "Look at the two named sides in relation to angle x, and see if they correspond with angle Sin, Cos or Tan. Then type in to your calculator the equation for the corresponding angle, and times it by the inverse."

Ash blinked…then blinked again. "Uhhhhhhhhhhhh…"

Hillary huffed and went back to her work. Ash frowned. He looked down at the sheet. One side was next to the angle, one was on the other side, and one was above. He scratched his head then leant over to the seat on the other side of him. "Hey, Leaf."

"Hm?" She slowly looked up from her latest doodle, of a heart with a few words inside it, and looked at him.

"What's the answer to number one?"

"Uhhhhh…"

Ash looked over at her work, and next to the first question, she had doodled another heart with a few letters written inside. He frowned then, shrugging, started writing that down too. Leaf flushed and shook her head, slapping a hand over his work. "No! That's not the answer!"

The rest of the class turned to stare at them, surprised at Leaf's exclamation. Gary smirked and looked around at them all. Leaf went bright red. Ash looked confused. Hillary scowled, her shoulders rising to her ears as she glared.

When everyone looked away again, Leaf giggled sheepishly. "Oops…"

There were a few minutes of silence, which were broken as Ash leant across to Gary and tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, Gary! What's the answer to number one?"

**_After school…_**

"Bye guys!" Dawn waved to her friends as they boarded their bus. Max scampered onto the large, yellow vehicle after waving half-heartedly to Gill who was urging him to watch the DVDs as soon as he could. Max gave him a shaky smile through the window then ducked his head, glad to have nabbed the seat by May before Fred could plant himself next to him.

When the bus had disappeared, Dawn walked back inside the school, heading toward the language department for the after school Spanish lessons. As usual, she was the first there, her Spanish notebook tucked under her arm. She glanced at her watch. Paul would be here in three…two…one…

Thump.

A soft thud occurred as a tall, lean body hit the wall. Dawn looked up with a dreamy smile as Paul looked straight ahead, leaning against the wall with his arms folded. He could feel Dawn's eyes piercing his head, and sighed. Did she ever stop looking at him? He snuck a small glance sideways to find she was still watching him. _Guess not…_

"Buenas dias!" A dark skinned teacher smiled cheerily as she reached the classroom. She unlocked the door and ushered them in but stopped Dawn. "Your Spanish is coming along very well! Keep up the good work!"

"Gracias Senora…" Dawn smiled and flushed with pride. The teacher urged her inside and shut the door. "Lets see…now, my Seventh year class have been working on coursework…as have my Sixth year class. Fifth and Fourth years, could you please team up with a Sixth or Seventh year and try to translate some of their coursework and perhaps pick out mistakes if you see them. First, Second and Third years, I have some other work for you…"

Dawn perked up and quickly scanned the room for Paul. Where was he…there he was! Talking to that spiky-haired dude…what was his name, Gary? Dawn scowled then remembered something; Gary was in Sixth year, so he couldn't possibly work with Paul. Grinning, Dawn got up and began making her way over when she was ambushed by some random kid with gingery-brown hair.

"Dee-Dee!"

"Kenny!" Dawn exclaimed with forced enthusiasm. "I didn't know you went to afterschool Spanish classes!"

"I didn't know you did! So, you want to work with me?"

"Eh, sorry Kenny, but you're not a Sixth or Seventh year…"

"Ugh, always following the rules…Fine…I'll work with someone else…Ehh…purple hair dude! I'll work with you!" he exclaimed, seeing Paul walk away from Gary. Dawn paled.

"No! I'll work with him!"

"Nuh-huh!"

Yuh-huh!"

"Hey! Uhh…Gary!" Kenny called. He pointed at Dawn. "She wants to work with you!"

"What? No I do-"

"Who doesn't?" Gary scoffed, walking over. "Alright then. Come on blueberry."

"I'm not a blueberry!" Dawn scowled as she was pushed toward him by Kenny. She reluctantly sat down with Gary, watching her friend rush over to Paul with glee. Gary pushed a piece of paper in front of her and leant back in his chair, not looking the least bit interested in Spanish. Dawn sighed and grabbed the paper and began to read.

"You need a comma there. You've spelt that wrong. That should be feminine and after the noun. You've spelt that wrong again. That sentence is in English…"

"Yeah, yeah…so fix it."

"What? No! Do it yourself!"

Gary sighed heavily. "Fine…just, tell me what to do…"

Dawn rolled her eyes. For the next hour she pointed out numerous mistakes and told him how to fix them and why, though she wasn't even sure if he was listening. He seemed more interested in staring out of the window and didn't take in any of what she was saying. Needless to say, she was quite glad when it was over.

"If I have to correct the spelling of me gusta again…" she mumbled to herself as she heaved her bag onto her shoulders and made for the exit. Stupid Kenny…stupid Gary…why did nothing ever go right for her?

_Well, this trip will change everything, _she thought to herself. _I know it…_

**Meanwhile…**

A figure swept down the school corridor, peering cautiously through passing doors and windows, as if looking for something…or looking _out_ for something. Eventually, the figure reached a glossy, wooden door adorned with a shiny, brass plaque on which it read;

_Principle's Office_

The figure grinned grimly as it reached his destination and knocked lightly on the door. The three, sharp taps stung the still, silent air.

"Come in!" the Headmaster called from inside. The figure quickly opened the door and slipped into the room.

"Hello…"

"Oh…" the Headmaster said. "What are you doing he- Ah! Ah!"

* * *

**Heheh…anyone who can work out who the Mysterious Cloaked Figure was gets a cookie. **

**Sooooo…recap!**

**-Max can't stand Fred and Gill.**

**-The script writers of Valorie Hill fail.**

**-Liz was cheating on Jack with Victor! GASP!**

**-Dawn goes to an afterschool Spanish club to see Paul more**

**-Drew is a 'stupid, arrogant prat'**

**-May is convinced that she will never love Drew.**

**-Liam is a nervous wreck.**

**-Katrina don't like Leaf that much.**

**-Ash, Gary and Leaf fail at Trigonometry.**

**-Gary fails at spelling 'Gusta' **

**-A Mysterious Cloaked Figure (the MCF!) is paying the Headmaster a visit…**

**Next Chapter: Getting There**


	5. Chapter 4: Getting There

**Chapter four has arrived! Huzzah! **

**I don't own anything apart from a few characters…who don't do very much.**

* * *

"May? Are you ready yet? I knew this would happen…"

"Almost, mum!"

"Well, stop for now and come down to eat your dinner!"

"Yes mum!"

"Oh, and could you get Max too, please?"

"Okay, mum!"

Footsteps sounded from outside her door which got quieter and quieter until the noise disappeared altogether. May sighed and looked at the suitcase she was sitting on. It was Sunday Evening. Tomorrow, she and twenty one…no, twenty two other students – as there had been a last minute addition to the trip – were going to spend a week, until next Monday, at Fuscilia Isle. To put it plainly, May couldn't wait…if only she could get her darn suitcase shut.

"Yes!" she whispered when the case finally clicked shut…only to spring open again. A cry of annoyance escaped her as she jumped on top of the suitcase until it closed. This time it didn't open. She jumped on it once more for good measure before walking out the room.

As she passed Max's room, she knocked on the door and said, "Hey, Max! Dinner's ready!"

There was a yelp of surprise from the other side, followed by some scuffling noises. May frowned and knocked again.

"Everything alright in there?" She twisted the doorknob to open the door but was stopped by Max yelling,

"No! Don't come in!" The door was hastily shoved closed by a force from within the room.

"Why not?" May frowned.

"Because…I'm busy!"

"Doing what?"

"Uhh…"

May waited patiently for an answer. However, when she didn't get one, she began to open the door again when…

"It's not you, it's me!"

May paused then grinned slyly at the familiar line, assuming her brother had finally fallen victim to Valorie Hill. "Come on, Maxie. Movie's over. Dinner time."

Max, blushing like a tomato, scampered out of the room, slamming the door behind him so May couldn't see what was in his room.

"Heheh…"

"You finally watched it then?"

He swallowed thickly, avoiding her eyes. "Um…yeah…"

"Fred and Gill will be pleased. You have a whole week to talk with them about it!"

"Yeah…"

"Anyway! Come on! Food!"

"Ah!" Max yelped as his sister grabbed the back of his shirt and dragged him down the stairs, giggling happily.

_**The next day…**_

Monday morning, the students of Totehall were greeted by the sight of two minibuses, each capable of holding twelve or so students. A few students came in dragging suitcases for their seven-day field trip. Among these was Misty Waterflower.

Her three sisters had been kind enough to drive her to school that day, as taking a large suitcase onto a bus was a tad bit awkward due to the bulkiness. Misty didn't even know why it was so bulky! She hadn't packed _that_ much. (She had guessed that her sisters had snuck some extra luggage in). Still, it meant she got a free lift and that was good enough for her.

"Hey Mist! Wow! You have a really big bag!" Ash commented, running over to her. "Why weren't you on the bus? May wasn't, either!"

"Sorry Ash…my sisters offered me a ride," Misty said sheepishly. "Hm…maybe May got a lift, too?"

"Maybe…hey Dawn!" His attention quickly switched from Misty to Dawn as the blue-haired girl ran over to them.

"Hey! Guys! We're meeting by the buses to be registered and stuff. We're leaving as soon as all of us are here," Dawn said, panting.

"How'd you know that?"

"Teacher told me…you seen May anywhere?"

"Nope." Ash and Misty shook their heads.

"I'm sure she'll work it out…come on! We need to make sure we get good seats!" The trio grabbed their bags and headed toward the buses were a few people were already gathering. As soon as they got there and were signed in, Dawn began looking around expectedly. Ash noticed this and nudged her lightly.

"Something wrong?"

"No! I was just looking for…someone…"

_**Meanwhile, at the school gates…**_

Liam was leaning against the entrance to the school, watching out for a certain, copper-haired girl. He was beginning to get nervous, as usual. What if she didn't show? What if she got ill? What if she decided at the last minute not to go? What if-

"Morning Liam."

"Eep!...Oh, hi Katrina…" Liam smiled shyly and almost dropped his bag as his hand suddenly got quite sweaty. He glanced down quickly and felt his heart leap when he saw she had a suitcase with her. She was still going to Fuscilia, all was good.

"Liam? Liam? Hey, Liam?" He then became aware of a hand clicking in his face and realised that he had zoned out.

"Yes? Sorry! I…uhh…got distracted…So, um, should we go to the buses?"

"…I guess; if that's where we're meant to go…"

Liam nodded quickly as she began walking toward them and quickly scurried after her, hoping they'd be on the same bus.

**Elsewhere…**

"C'mon, Gary! We're going to be late!" Leaf exclaimed, dragging the boy by the hand across the courtyard toward the small crowd by the buses.

"They're not gonna leave without us, don't worry," Gary said, letting himself be dragged. After signing in, Leaf began bouncing on the balls of her feet, looking around excitedly.

"Oh, this is so cool!" Leaf enthused. "Fuscilia Isle is said to be one of the most beautiful places…and hardly any body lives there! Some places are so remote, there is literally no noise to be heard," she rambled. Gary smiled as he listened patiently to her.

"Sounds amazing."

"I know! Hey look, Paul's here!"

"Oh yeah…"

**Nearby…**

Paul sighed quietly as he trudged over to the minibuses. He wasn't holding a suitcase, but had a large rucksack on his back. When Dawn saw him, she smiled and rolled her eyes. Trust him to be a minimalist packer.

Ash caught her staring at someone and frowned deeply when he saw Paul. The purple-haired lad seemed to notice the two watching him and glanced over. His face remained completely devoid of expression as he looked away again.

Not a minute later, a green haired lad stepped out of a pure white, posh looking car. Someone else handed him a moderately sized case from the boot, bowed him goodbye and drove off. Drew, however, was already making his way over to the crowd. When he had signed in, he went to talk to Gary and Leaf, flicking his hair out of his eyes.

Gary's mouth fell into a straight line when Drew joined them. "Oh, hey Drew."

"Hellooooo…" Drew trailed off, noticing something behind Gary and Leaf. Gary didn't need to turn around to know what he was staring at.

**Nearby…**

"Hey guys!" May called as she ran over to her friends, dragging a red suitcase behind her.

"Hey May! How come you weren't on the bus today?" Ash wanted to know.

"Got a lift with my dad," May said with a smile. "Said it was unfair to make me drag this thing all the way to the bus stop and heave it on to the bus…"

"Same with me," Misty nodded then frowned. "I didn't know your brother was coming…"

"He's not," said May. She glanced over her shoulder and paled. "Max?"

"Hey May!" Max grinned, pulling along his wheeled case. "Guess what!"

"You're coming!"

"Yep!"

"But-but I thought third years couldn't come!" She frowned at him.

"Well, I talked to the Principle the other week, and finally got him to let me come. He's got a nasty cold. Sneezed all over me."

"How come I'm only just finding out?" May squeaked.

"What, that he's got a cold?"

"No! That you're coming!"

"Oh! Well, I asked mum and dad to keep it from you as I knew you'd try to dissuade me." May smirked, his glasses flashing in the light.

"But…Ugh, this is so unfair!" May complained.

"Calm down, May. It won't be that bad," Misty said.

"Yeah, Max is cool," Ash added, a tad unhelpfully.

"Have you signed in yet?" Dawn asked.

"…We're meant to sign in? Oh, I'd better go and do that…" Chuckling sheepishly, she pushed her way over to the teacher and reported her presence, along with her brother's. She made her way back to her friends, sulking.

A few minutes later, the teacher called a register to double check that everyone was there. When all the names had been called and ticked, the teacher split the crowd into two, even halves. "Could you twelve please get on the first bus," he called, using his arms to slice the crowd in half and usher one part onto the bus. The students filed on excitedly, chatting amongst themselves.

When they were all on, the second lot were told to get on the other bus. Ash, Misty, Dawn, May and Max were first to charge on and look around for a seat. The seats were all in pairs. Ash sat down somewhere, hoping Dawn would sit next to him, but instead she sat behind him, having glanced out the window and seen Paul was on her bus. Ash frowned and went to get up, but found Misty next to him.

"Eh, s'cuse me…I need to sit further back…I get ill otherwise," Ash made up, trying to get to Dawn. However, as soon as he had sat down, he realised she had gotten up and moved somewhere else, as Paul had sat down on the other side of the bus. She started pushing through the people on the bus to get to him, but arrived to find Leaf there too. Both girls stared at each other for a bit, glaring at each other. Paul arched an eyebrow at them and slipped away from them, but they were too busy glowering to notice.

May, meanwhile, was settling down next to Ash when he got up. "Er…I need to sit further forward…I get ill otherwise," he said as an explanation. May sighed then scowled when Drew sat himself next to her. Glaring, she stood and went to find a different seat.

Paul was having a tough time. He just wanted to sit on his own, but he couldn't seem to be able to sit anywhere without Dawn or Leaf appearing by him. He was lucky the bus could seat twelve in total, meaning he wouldn't have to sit next to anyone.

Leaf, realising Paul was going to be tricky to get next to, decided to sit next to Liam, only to find him standing in the runway between seats, looking around anxiously. She opened her mouth to speak when he disappeared, having found who he was looking for. She walked after him, followed by Gary who had been trying to keep up with her the entire time.

For the next few minutes, it went on like that, with people continuously getting up to sit next to someone else, only to find that person had moved. Finally the teacher snapped.

"EVERYBODY STOP!"

The entire group froze, staring at the teacher in shock.

"Misty, sit next to May, please," the teacher commanded. Misty and May shuffled over to some seats and sat down quietly.

"Dawn, sit with Liam behind them."

Liam sighed sadly, slipping into the seats behind the two girls with the blue-haired girl.

"Gary, sit behind them."

"Why do I have to sit on my own?" Gary asked.

"Because I said so. Sit!"

Scowling, Gary stomped off to sit in his seat.

"Mr Ketchum, sit next to Miss Leaf, please, on this side. Drew and Katrina, sit behind them."

Drew frowned, flicked his hair, and took a seat behind Leaf and Ash, followed by the ginger girl. This left two people to sit behind them, and both of them knew it. The two eyed each other up, one looking unaffected, the other practically petrified.

"Finally, Paul and Max, sit behind them. And if any one of you tries to move, you will be off this bus faster than you can say Fuscilia Isle. Do I make myself clear?"

The party was silent. Happy with his work, the teacher sat in the seat by the driver at the front of the bus as the vehicle growled into life. Within minutes, they were speeding down the road. It took a while but the students finally began to talk.

**With May and Misty**

"Well, that was interesting…" May mumbled, leaning back in her seat. "I didn't know Ash got ill at the back of a bus…"

"At the back? He told me he got ill at the front," Misty said, frowning.

"…Maybe he needs to be slap-bang in the middle?"

"Maybe…"

**With Drew and Katrina **

Drew was frowning deeply, looking miffed as he glanced around the bus. Katrina noticed but said nothing at first, preferring to stay quiet. However, the noiselessness of the situation was beginning to annoy her, so she said, "What's up with you?"

"Nothing."

"Pfft, that is such a lie. You look…miffed."

"Just someone I would've preferred to have sat next to," Drew replied, flicking his hair. Katrina glared.

"Gee, thanks."

Drew chuckled. Katrina sighed.

"Who then?"

"Hm?"

"Who did you want to sit next to? The brunette with the bandana?"

"Huh?" Drew blushed ever so slightly.

"I don't know. You just seemed to be following her during the seating fiasco."

"Hm, whatever."

**With Dawn and Liam**

"Um…I don't think we've met," Dawn said, breaking the silence between her and the shy boy she was stuck next to.

Liam flinched in his seat, twisting around to look at her, his bespectacled eyes wide with surprise. He managed a small smile. "Heh, you're right…"

"I'm Dawn! Dawn Berlitz!" She smiled brightly.

"Um…Liam…Liam Wate," Liam said quietly. Dawn frowned and attempted to start conversation.

"So…have you ever been to Fuscilia before?"

Liam shook his head.

"Have you ever been on a boat before?"

Again, Liam shook his head.

"Have you ever been on a bus before?"

Liam gave her an odd look.

Dawn sighed. This would be harder than she thought.

**With Ash and Leaf**

"Oh man! This is so exciting!" Leaf squealed excitedly, staring out of the window of the bus. Ash grinned.

"Yeah," he agreed. "I-"

"I can't wait to see the town! It looked so clean and pretty on the leaflet!"

"With lots of places to e-"

"And the forest looked so enchanting!"

"Yeah, full of a-"

"And the fuchsia field!" Leaf enthused. "It sounds so cool!"

Ash opened his mouth to comment but, once again, was cut off.

"And the channel and that itty-bitty island! And the myth of the crystal caves."

Ash sighed.

**With Gary**

Gary, meanwhile, was slumped in his seat, bored. His feet were on the empty seat beside him, his back half against the walls and window of the bus. He was flipping carelessly through a magazine.

**With Paul and Max**

Paul and Max were silent for a while, neither looking at the other. However, the younger couldn't keep it in anymore and yelped, "How did I get stuck with you!"

"Do you think I _wanted_ to sit next to a whiney brat?"

"Hey! I'm not a whiney brat!" Max whined.

Paul arched an eyebrow. "You sound like one."

Max glared. "Do not! I don't see what people see in you!"

"Hn." Paul turned to stare out of the window, but couldn't help feeling slightly interested. This must've shown on his face as Max continued.

"I mean you're cold, mean, uncaring, unfeeling, arrogant-"

"Gee. Thanks."

"But still people fall for you! You wouldn't believe the amount of admires you have in my year alone!"

"Great," Paul said, though he didn't sound at all pleased. Max sighed and, having nothing else to say to him, took out a small, hand-held, electronic device and started tapping away eagerly on it.

**Later on…**

When the buses arrived at the docks, two hours later, and had been loaded onto the boat, the students were allowed to get out and stretch their legs during the journey on the boat to the Island. Friends rejoined each other to talk and complain about the journey.

"Were you alright, Ash?" Misty asked as she and May made their way over to the boy. "Right at the front?"

"Yeah…why wouldn't I be?" Ash said, blank-faced.

"You said you got ill if you were too far back or forward on the bus," May explained, remembering what Misty had said earlier.

"I did? Oh yeah! I did! Well, it was alright…"

"Well don't worry about the drive to the hotel," said May. "It's only twenty minutes!"

"Great."

"Gosh! That was so boring!" Dawn exclaimed upon reaching the group. "I swear that guy never speaks!"

May, Misty and Ash laughed slightly but stopped when Max rushed over. "Man that guy's grumpy."

"Who? Paul?" Misty guessed.

"Paul's not grumpy!" Dawn defended. "He's just…"

"The dark, silent type?" May finished for her with a giggle.

Dawn flushed.

Elsewhere on the ship, others were walking around, leaning over the rails and pointing at dolphins peering out above the waves. On the Island, they would be put into activity groups, and everyday would have a session with someone from the Island, from cooking to nature walks. They would also find out their room mates, and have the rest of the day to explore the island. Everyone was excited and was silently praying they would be grouped with their friends.

* * *

**And there you have it! Things start getting exciting in the next chapter, when they get to the island and are left to explore. You'll find out the rooming arrangements and activity groups. **

**Just out of interest, what main characters would you have put together? Both for room mates and activity groups? (The activity groups are mixed genders, but the rooms aren't.)**

**Also…the title of the chapter, Getting There, is the name of a film. And if you know what film that is, then I feel very sorry for you, even more so if you've seen it. (I had to do an English essay critiquing it…boy was that fun.)**

**Review please!**

**Next Chapter: Monday is for Exploring**


	6. Chapter 5: Monday is for Exploring

**Chapter five is here! Huzzah! They've arrived at the island and are out exploring the many features, including the forest, marshes and town. **

**So, who will they be roomed with? Will they get on? As they begin their stay at the island, will feelings change? **

**I don't own anything accept for…well, the island and some of the characters. **

"Aw man! This place is amazing!" May exclaimed, looking around in wonder. The buses had just arrived at the hotel and the students were gathered outside the door, a few teachers in front. One was holding a bundle of lists.

"Alright!" he said loudly to get the attention of the youths. "I will now read out your rooming arrangements and your activity groups."

"Get on with it!" someone yelled from the group. The teacher frowned. The girl who had shouted smirked, flicking a sea-green and purple lock of hair from her orange eyes.

"Janet. Be quiet. The girls' rooms are on the first floor and the boys' on the second.

"In room 111 are Misty Waterflower, Katrina Willow, Hillary Crush and Janet Taylor.

"In Room 112 are Dawn Berlitz, Leaf Green, Bonnie Rodes and Amy Leer.

"In Room 113 are Brianna Oats, May Maple and Molly Quinn."

The girls glanced around at each other, eying up their to-be roommates.

"As for the boys. In room 203 are Ash Ketchum, Drew Hayden, Rudy Parks and Amos Brady.

"In room 204 are Max Maple, Jed Nicholson, Phil Frazier and Paul Shinji.

"In room 205 are Gary Oak, Liam Wate, Bennie Rodes and Barry Jun."

Max groaned upon hearing he was with Paul…again. He then peered at the rest of the students, trying to work out who Jed and Phil were. However, he didn't have time to ponder this long as the teacher began speaking again.

"The activity groups are as follows," the teacher began again. "Group A is Drew Harden, Max Maple, Jed Nicholson, Molly Quinn and Dawn Berlitz.

"Group B is Bennie Rodes, Brianna Oats, May Maple, Gary Oak, Leaf Green and Amos Brady.

"Group C is Bonnie Rodes, Ash Ketchum, Janet Taylor, Misty Waterflower Rudy Parks and Amy Leer.

"And finally, Group D is Katrina Willow, Hillary Crush, Paul Shinji, Phil Frazier, Liam Wate and Barry Jun."

"Hey, I'm with you, Mist!" Ash said happily, grinning at his friends. Misty smiled.

"This is great!"

Max was sighing in relief that Dawn was in his group, glad he would know someone. Although he wouldn't admit it, it was quite daunting for him as everyone was at least two years older than him. After a few rules were laid down, the students were allowed to flood into the hotel to meet their roommates and put all of their belongings away.

**In room 111**

_Hillary Crush_

_Janet Taylor_

_Misty Waterflower_

_Katrina Willow_

Misty walked through into room 111. Her three room mates were already there, packing things into drawers. The first girl, Hillary Crush, was a weedy girl with straight, dark hair and dark eyes that squinted from behind a pair of glasses. She had finished unpacking and was arranging a few notebooks and pieces of paper on her bedside table, along with a small pot of pens and pencils.

The next was Janet Taylor. She was an eccentric looking person, who's naturally sea-blue-green coloured hair had been interlaced with royal purple highlights. Her eyes were bright orange and her mouth pulled up in a smirk. She was still throwing random articles of clothing into her drawers.

The other girl, Katrina Willow, was putting her things away in a neater manner, folding them up first. She had straight, orange hair to her shoulders with a yellow highlight, and electric yellow eyes.

Misty dragged her suitcase to the only chest of drawers still empty and unbuckled the case. Immediately a yelp of surprise escaped her lips.

"GAH!"

Three heads swung around to look at her. As soon as she had opened the case, she had been attacked by a barrage of clothes that had sprung from the over-packed depths. She pulled a shirt off her face and frowned. She hadn't packed that…or that skirt…or that scarf…or those shorts…No wonder her suitcase had felt to heavy before, her sisters must have stuffed in a few extra things.

"Ooh, I'm gonna kill them," Misty mumbled to herself, scooping everything up from the floor.

"Maybe you should try packing less in the future," Katrina commented. Janet – or 'Jaz' as she preferred to be called – was sniggering into her hand. Hillary was silent, bar the soft scrape of lead against paper as she scribbled something down on a notebook.

"I didn't pack this!" Misty yelped.

"You mean your mum packed for you?" Jaz said then sniggered some more.

"No!" Misty denied, throwing something into a drawer whilst glaring darkly over her shoulder. Jaz only started laughing harder. This was going to be an interesting week.

**In Room 112**

_Dawn Berlitz_

_Leaf Green_

_Amy Leer_

_Bonnie Rodes_

Dawn was first to enter her room. She threw her bags down on the bed closest to the window and surveyed the room. All of the rooms were identical, give or take a few beds and chests of drawers. They were quite large and spacious with two big windows. The walls were cream and the carpets and ceiling were white. The furniture was of a medium brown wood and the covers were a darker shade of cream than the walls.

The door opened again and Leaf Green walked in, smiling widely. She waved at Dawn with one hand, the other lugging her case into the room. She dropped it on another bed and started to unpack. The two girls small-talked for a bit before the door opened again.

The last two girls made their entrance. One, Amy Leer, was looking quite upset. Her blonde hair was curly and reached past her shoulders. Her pale pink eyes were sad. Amy was being dragged into the room by the other, slightly taller, girl.

Bonnie Rodes also had blonde hair, but it was straight and cut into a short bob. Her eyes were a light, leaf-green colour.

"Don't worry," she was saying. "You'll see Amos again later when you've unpacked!" 

"But what i-if he takes too long unpacking a-and we keep missing each other like i-in that m-movie?" Amy sobbed.

"That won't happen! If you can't find him, I'll get Bennie to find him and bring him to you! We won't stand seeing a couple in distress!" Bonnie said in an assuring tone before noticing Dawn and Leaf. "Oh, hello!"

"Hi," Dawn and Leaf said, smiling. They reminded each other of their names before falling into friends chatter.

**In Room 113 **

_May Maple _

_Brianna Oats_

_Molly Quinn_

May stepped into room 113 at the same time as another girl called Brianna Oats. May and Brianna were familiar with each other, as they both had certain lessons together. May liked Brianna, and for a while Brianna had liked her too…but along the lines something had gone wrong, but May didn't know what.

"Hey Brianna," May said in a friendly voice. Brianna put on a smile.

"Oh, hey May," she greeted in reply. Her reddish-brown hair fell to her shoulders. Her light green eyes looked around the room, taking in the three beds and three chests of drawers. May had already walked in and was deciding which bed to take. When the two had bagsied their beds and were in the process of unpacking, the third and final roommate stepped in.

Molly Quinn was a shy girl. Her long, dark hair acted as a curtain around her face, her violet eyes wide. She offered the two smiles.

"Hi."

May and Brianna smiled back. They knew the girl from their classes, so there was no need for introductions. Molly dropped her things on the last bed and began to unpack.

**In room 203**

_Amos Brady_

_Drew Hayden_

_Ash Ketchum_

_Rudy Parks_

Drew had finished unpacking. His things had been arranged in his suitcase already, so unpacking was merely a process of transferring one section of his suitcase to each drawer, something that had only taken a couple of minutes. Ash Ketchum, on the other hand, had a very messy suitcase, and so he was still sorting out his socks from his shirts.

Amos Brady was sighing sadly to himself, dropping each article of clothing into the drawers forlornly. He was a stocky boy with reddish-pink hair cut short and neat and pale, icy-blue eyes.

"What's up, Amos?" Ash asked, looking over at him.

"I miss Amy," he replied dully, not bothering to look over at Ash.

"You saw her less than ten minutes ago!" Drew pointed out, one eyebrow arched.

"Ten minutes…ten hours…it's all the same to me…" Amos said. Ash and Drew glanced at each other but before either could say anything, Rudy Parks burst in. He was a tall boy with auburn hair and dark eyes.

"Hey guys," he said as he entered. "What up? What's with him?" He nodded over at Amos. Amos wailed again and Drew sighed before explaining the situation. Amos Brady and Amy Leer were renowned in the school for being the soppiest, most love-sick couple ever. Every living moment they spent together, and when they were apart, each acted as if it was the end of the world.

**In room 204 **

_Phil Frazier_

_Max Maple_

_Jed Nicholson_

_Paul Shinji_

Max was the last to enter his room, as he had been busy trying not to get squashed in the crowds. When he got in, he found his there room mates already there. He already knew Paul, of course, but the other two he hadn't met. However, he couldn't help but feel that they looked familiar.

One of the boys had silvery hair and deep, blue eyes, which was odd as the other had blue hair – though it was more of a pale powder blue - and silver-grey eyes. Both had identical grins.

"What's your name, lil' buddy?" one asked.

"You know, I've got a brother the same age as you," the other said.

"I'm Max," Max replied.

"Max Maple?" they said together.

"So you're the guy Fred's been talking about," the blue haired chap said. "Name's Phil."

"And I'm Jed," said the silver-haired bloke. "You know my brother too…Gil?"

"Yeah…I know them…" Max said weakly.

**I**

**n room 205**

_Barry Jun_

_Gary Oak_

_Bennie Rodes_

_Liam Wate_

The four boys were already in room 205. Liam was quietly putting his things away. Bennie was studying a list of the people on the trip. Gary was yawning and Barry was running around, doing…something. That is, he was until he tripped over Gary's foot and was sent flying. He lay, sprawled on the ground, for only a second before he leapt up, glaring.

"I ought to fine you for that!" he cried, pointing dramatically at Gary. The spiky-haired kid raised his eyebrows.

"Mmhm. I think not. See you round, weird kid." He left the room.

Gary walked down the stairs and out of the hotel to explore when he noticed Leaf coming out a little behind him. He smiled and waved her over. Leaf grinned and ran to meet him.

"Hey. I can't believe we're finally here! Come on, let's go exploring!" she said, taking his hand so as to drag him around. Gary yelped as she began running at a fast pace, with him hanging on to her hand for dear life. He dug his heels into the ground, forcing her to slow down to a walk.

_That's better_, Gary thought as they walked in sync. He hadn't let go of her hand yet, and was overjoyed as she hadn't let go of his.

Within an hour, all of the other students had left the hotel and were exploring the island in small groups or on their own.

Fuscilia isle was a large, elongated-crescent shaped island that reminded one of an eye. The fattest part, behind the curve of the crescent, was filled by a large forest, the North of which merged into an area of marshland. North of the marshland was a steep drop over a cliff which overlooked the top tip of the island, which was covered in rock pools. There was a band of sand that surrounded the island, but was at it's thickest at the southern tip of the crescent. West of the large beach was the hotel complex which was by a small town. Behind the town was the forest.

There was another island that was part of Fuscilia Isle, which was nestled inside the bay of the crescent. This small island was shaped almost like the large island, but was more round and the two tips of the crescent were linked by a thin band of sand and shingle. In the fatter part of the small island was a large field which was full of the same dark pink flowers; fuchsias.

Misty, May, Dawn, Ash and Max were exploring the forest when they got separated. Max had stopped to peer at some rare specimen of plant or insect or something the others didn't really care about. The others had almost left without him, but May noticed at the last second that Max had stopped and ran back. Misty, Dawn and Ash, however, hadn't realised and carried on.

By the time she had pulled her brother away from…whatever he was looking at, she had no idea where her friends had gone. "Oh no," she cried. "Where are they now?"

"Don't worry, we'll meet them back at the hotel for dinner if we don't find them," Max said. "Ash wouldn't let them miss it."

May sighed and the brother and sister began walking in some random direction. Little did they know; they were being followed. But little did their follower know that he was, too, being followed.

Soon, the four (including the follower and the follower's follower) reached the edge of the forest and had come out onto the marshland.

"Be careful, May," Max said to his sister. "This area is known to have some unstable and unsafe patches."

They picked their way across to the edge, where the marshes met a sheer drop. The Maple siblings went right to the edge and looked down. They were very high up.

Behind them, Drew was worried. Max was backing away from the edge to look at…something interesting he'd found on the marshes, and the patch of ground May was standing on looked slightly unstable.

Behind him, Brianna was frowning. Her Drew was staring at May. How dare he? No, how dare _she! _How dare she use her…feminine charms to lure Drew away from her!

It all happened very fast after that. The cliff began to crumble. May cried out as she lost her footing and stumbled forward. Max swung around and, in his hurry to get his sister, tripped and fell. Brianna gasped in horror. Drew shot forward like a bullet. May was already beginning to fall, a silent scream on her face. He wasn't going to make it.

But he did. He put on a burst of speed and grabbed the back of May's shirt, tugging her backwards into his arms. May threw her arms around his neck, terrified. They watched a few rocks tumble down the cliff edge and smash on the ground below. The two of them were panting. Slowly, they moved their heads to look at each other, eyes wide.

Drew's cheeks were tinged with pink as he stared at the girl he had grown to like – maybe even love – who had almost died, who he had almost lost forever.

May's face flushed as she gazed at the irritating, but undeniably handsome, boy who annoyed her on a daily basis…the boy who had just saved her life…who was looking at her with such deep, intense, gorgeous eyes.

It was like that for a long time before Max cleared his throat. Embarrassed, Drew retreated and let May go, safely away from the cliff edge. May thanked him quietly before grabbing Max and darting away. She had a lot to think about.

It was a shame, really, that Bonnie and Bennie Rhodes hadn't seen this. It was also a shame that they were currently walking through town at the time they were. Bonnie and Bennie were twins. Although they weren't identical, they looked very similar. Both had the same, pale faces, blonde hair and leaf-green eyes. Both were the same height, both were slender and had long limbs. Even their clothes were the same colour.

Having given up looking for May and Max in the forest, Misty, Ash and Dawn found themselves back in town – though Misty and Ash believed that Dawn had led them there as she was now begging them to go around with her. They decided to give in to her pleads and the three of them started exploring the small town. There were several small outlet stores with interesting things in the window, a flower shop, a sweet shop, a grocers and a convenience shop, among other things. It was there that they bumped into Paul…and Barry.

"Hey, it's Paul," Dawn said, nodding at the purple-haired boy. He heard her shout and rolled his eyes. She was still following him, he noted. Though he couldn't help but think about how he had been noticing her following him more and more. However, he was unaware of the blond boy walking behind him.

Well, he was unaware until Dawn, too busy gawking at him, tripped over a rock and stumbled forward into him. He caught her out of instinct rather than actual care, but then froze. Paul held her awkwardly for a few seconds, unsure of what to do, whilst her friends watched with baited breath. He then pushed her to her feet and stepped away. Unfortunately, he pushed her slightly too hard as Dawn stumbled _again_ but this time fell into Barry.

"Gah!"

"Ah!...Hey! I should fine you for that!"

"Sorry!"

The force of Dawn falling had sent them both to the ground. Dawn quickly clambered off of him, flushing from embarrassment. Little did they know, two other people had witnessed this scene.

"Did you see that, Bon?" Bennie said quietly to his sister, watching as Dawn fell onto Barry.

"How sweet! Just like in a movie," Bonnie cooed. She smiled and added, "And look, Ben! She's blushing!"

"How perfectly adorable!"

"They should get together, don't you think?"

"I do! I can tell just by looking at them that they belong together!"

"This trip is going to be so fun! Uniting two people who are destined to be!" The twins sighed dramatically at the thought.

Yes, it was, indeed, _very_ unlucky that Bonnie and Bennie Rhodes were in town.

Meanwhile, Katrina was walking around the island with Liam close behind. She knew he was there; she'd known ever since his foot had gone through a rock pool, but she hadn't revealed him. In a strange, slightly cruel way, it was entertaining listening to him sneaking along after her, especially as he thought she didn't know.

When she reached the cliff, the one May had nearly plummeted to her doom from; she stopped, glanced up and down, and spotted a cave. _How interesting_, she thought, making her way along the rocks toward it. She peered inside. It was pitch black. She took a small torch from her pocket ("never go anywhere without a torch," her dad had said) and switched it on. The cave seemed to go pretty deep into the cliff.

She was about to go in but remembered Liam behind her. She doubted the bookworm had a torch, and she wasn't sure if he would follow her in or not. If he did, he might get hurt in the dark…which would be bad. She sighed and turned around, much to his horror.

"If you're going to come in too, stick close," she said before walking inside. Liam paused for a second before scurrying after her. Although his face was burning from embarrassment at being caught, he didn't want to be left alone. At least, he thought they were alone…

But no, they weren't. Budding young journalist, Hillary Crush, was there too. She had been watching them from a safe distance, wondering where they were going. She was hunting around for a good story when she saw Liam following Katrina. That had got her suspicion going straight away. And now they were sneaking off into a cave…

Hillary smiled grimly to herself, a look that looked particularly sinister on her pale face, and clicked a small button on her pen. A small light flickered on from the end of her pen which she used to safely follow Katrina and Liam into the cave.

**Meanwhile…**

"That was embarrassing," Dawn mumbled as she, Misty and Ash hurried away from Barry and Paul. "Still…Paul caught me and held me for a few second…" she sighed happily.

"Yeah, before shoving you away again," Ash said, jealous.

"Tch." Dawn waved him off dismissively. "Hey! May!"

The three looked up to see May and Max walking toward them. Well, Max was dragging a thoughtful and absent looking May toward them.

"Hey guys!" Max said cheerfully.

"You alright, May," Misty asked. "Are you…thinking?"

"Mmhmm…"

"…You do not know how odd that looks," Ash said, earning him a smack from Misty.

"Sorry…it's just…" May shook her head. "It's not that big a deal. I just…I dunno…can't get it, him, out of my mind." 

"Who, what?" Dawn asked, dying to know.

"Drew; he saved my life." Judging by the looks on her friends' faces, May knew she wouldn't be allowed to go anywhere until she had described what had happened, so she did. She told them the story from her and Max getting separated to her being tugged away from her doom by her green-eyed saviour. The only things she left out were his face after he'd saved her, and how she had felt herself.

Dawn found it adorable. Misty found it incredible. Ash found is dramatic…so much so that his stomach rumbled.

"Oops…I guess it's food time," he said sheepishly. His friends laughed and they began to make their way back to the hotel. They were allowed to eat between half five and half six at the hotel, and it was twenty past five at the moment. The hotel was a few minute walk away, so they had time to explore the hotel whilst they waited.

A couple of other people were inside already. On the third floor they accidentally walked in on Amos Brady and Amy Leer…showing their affection for each other. The four of them hurried past, hoping they hadn't been noticed. A little later they met Gary and Leaf, who were snooping around their peers' rooms.

The other rooms were empty, apart from room #111 in which Jaz was flicking through a black notebook. Looking up, she saw Ash, May, Dawn and Misty and grinned at them, holding up the book.

"You wouldn't believe the stuff that nut writes in here!" she laughed. "Listen to this, Dawn. It's about you!" She cleared her throat importantly before reading aloud from the book: "'It is common knowledge that fifteen-year-old Dawn Berlitz (Fifth Year) has taken a large fancy to seventeen-year-old Paul Shinji (Seventh Year). However, is this Saturn-sized crush spinning out of control as she has not only taken to following Shinji around like a love-sick puppy, but also frequently visits his brother, Reggie, in the local pet shop…'"

Jaz laughed again and resumed flicking through the notebook. "Saturn-sized, pfft."

Dawn was gaping at her. "She…who…wrote that?"

"Ol' Hillz. Hillary Crush. Dark hair, glasses…thinks she some sort of hot-shot journalist. Mental, if you ask me."

"Why would she write that about Dawn?" Ash asked, frowning. "Is it for some sort of newspaper?"

"Ha! She wishes…hang on, I'll try to find one about you, Ash," she said, giving him a wide, sly grin. He politely declined and the four of them quickly slipped away, leaving Jaz to carry on going through Hillary's things.

"I don't suppose Hillary will be very happy when she finds out Jaz has been going through her stuff," Dawn said.

"I don't suppose she will," Misty agreed.

Indeed Hillary wouldn't, but she had something bigger on her mind; something that could make her journalist career. The meagre bulb on her pen only lit up a small section of the cave, but that didn't matter; she was following the sounds of the footsteps in front of her.

She knew when they stopped because the edge of her circle of light started lapping on Liam's heels, but neither he nor Katrina noticed. She could see the light of Katrina's torch moving and realised with horror that they were turning around. Hillary leapt behind a stalagmite and, pulling out her notebook, watched and listened eagerly. However, the cave echoed quite a bit and they were talking very quietly. She could only make out bits of their conversation.

"…a stronger one…" she heard Katrina say.

"What?" Liam asked. "But, won't it…"

"…Daft…it's just…going to kill…" 

Hillary scribbled down what she heard, a story already formulating in her head from her evidence.

The two teenagers soon were too far away to hear much more, but Hillary didn't care. She'd just stumble on something amazing. They were looking for something…something stronger than what they already had, whatever that was. And, most shockingly, they were going to kill someone. There was no doubt about it.

Katrina and Liam were spies.

**Sorry, that was a really random ending. I just thought it would be funny to have the budding young journalist running around for evidence about a spy mission. Heheh, fail. Of course Katrina and Liam aren't spies. It was just unfortunate that Hillary heard what she did of their conversation. **

**Review please! Next chapter: Tuesday is for Scheming**


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